When the Dash Comes Around

Trixie knew she was as far from civilization as she can possibly be. The unicorn was armed with only her instincts, wit, and a map. Sometime ago, she came across the map while taking refuge from a travelling goat in her vardo. In the middle of the night, while the goat was sleeping, Trixie stole the map from a secret compartment in the vardo, then quietly made her way out. The map lead her through the wilderness for a long time. Trixie didn’t know how many days, or weeks, have gone by since then.

She hadn’t eaten since beginning her travels. Trixie rationalized to herself that she didn’t need to eat. The map was going to lead her to bury treasure, all the richest of the world she can’t possibly imagine. And to think that goat was going to find the lost treasure before she, the Great and Powerful Trixie, was the only thing that occupied her thoughts.

Trixie was a unicorn who specialized in a different kind of magic. While most unicorns use magic to learn about, and observe their environment and themselves, Trixie used her magic to entertain ponies. She began to shows and performances since she was a filly, eleven-years-old to be exact. She was inspired to get into show business by the greatest magician of all-time, Hoofdini. During her early years Trixie kept a chart she used a measuring tool between Hoofdini and herself. It was to see if she can catch up to his greatness.

Recently, however, she decided to take a break from doing magic shows. There was a rumor that was spreading about a hidden treasure somewhere in the outer regions of Equestria. As luck or fate would have it, Trixie came across the goat who carried the map to that very treasure. It didn’t matter to her how far she had to go, or if she’ll die from starvation. Once the treasure is found, all the hardships she’d endured will be worth it. There was a moment when Trixie compared her to a character from a story she heard years ago. The stallion wandered the desert for forty days and forty nights, only to find a breathtaking oasis the middle of all that sand. The stallion believed it was a mirage, and walked passed it, only to realize too late it was a blessing from the gods themselves, and the oasis disappeared. Well, Trixie wasn’t going to make that mistake like the stallion did. She’ll take anything she sees, even if it was too good to be true.

The landscape was filled with rock and stone, making it difficult for Trixie to walk. She took out the map and read it. Apparently, the cave where the treasure is located is nearby. There are only several paces she’ll have to walk before she gets there. Before she knew it she had to climb a steep slope. One misstep, no matter how insignificant, can cause her to tumble downward. As she climbed sweat trickled from her forehead. Perspiration drenched her hair, the strands blocking her vision. Trixie wiped her forehead cleaned and continued upward. Nothing was going to stop her from finding the treasure. Finally Trixie climbed to the top, only to find that going downward met she’ll have to walk through more rocks and climb more slopes.

“Drat!” she said. Trixie pulled the map from her saddlebag and opened it. She scanned it closely. “Whoever made this has no sense of direction,” she said. Trixie put the map away and continued down, almost tripping and falling, but stopping herself just in time.

For a while Trixie had the feeling that she was walking aimlessly, or worse, in circles. Trixie groaned as she came across another steep rocky hill, forcing herself to once again climb upward. It was a long climb, as if trying to reach the top of a mountain that reached toward heaven. As before, Trixie stumbled, but stopped herself before tumbling down the rock hill. Trixie is almost to the top, she told herself. Just a little bit further. Trixie crawled to the top, and looking forward she could see something in the distance. It was a formation on the ground, surrounded by dead trees, which seem to have a hole in it. Trixie consulted her map, and a smile was attached to her face when she realized she found the cave. “Brilliant!” she exclaimed.

Trixie rushed down the slope, sliding across until she landed on the flat surface, maneuver herself through the bumps and curves on the ground, climbed another hill when finally she arrived at the mouth of the cave. She leaned forward, noticing the cave carried an unnatural silence. Trixie lit her horn to illuminate her path, and entered with cautious steps. She kept in mind all those adventure stories where the hero enters a cave and managed to successfully evade the traps that were set inside. Much to relief there were no such traps as she ventured deeper, but she remained vigilant. Trixie looked over her shoulder once in a while to make sure nopony was following her. Sound was nonexistent the further she walked. Trixie can no longer see the opening of the cave when she turned around. She continued forward nonetheless.

Without looking she bumped face-first into a dead end. Trixie gasped in disbelief. There was no way the path ended here. She searched for another opening with the light from her horn. Sadly there was nothing to be found. Trixie cursed under her breath. Then, from the corner of her eye, she spotted something on the stone wall. When she inspected it closely, Trixie learned it was an inscription of some sort. It was carved in rock. The words were faint, but still readable. Closely her eyes scanned the sentences, and they read, “Whoever enters this cave, turn back. What you seek will not be found here. Turn away from this dreaded place, for only darkness dwells beneath the depths.”

Having read the passage, Trixie figured the treasure must be hidden somewhere. “Nopony can scare away the Great and Powerful Trixie!” she said. Trixie searched for a hollow surface by running her hoof through the dirt. Then she scanned the ground with her horn until it changed color. She found it. “Time to dig,” Trixie said to herself. She removed her backpack and took out a miniature shovel.

The lost treasure was well within her grasp. Her mind created images of gold pouring from the sky. She saw every inch of herself covered in jewels and diamonds. Importantly, everyone from every corner of Equestria will come see her. Trixie didn’t think Hoofdini could have done something amazing at this level.

She stopped. Trixie heard something, a faint whisper in the air.

Don’t do it, someone said.

“Hello?” she called out. “Who is there? Reveal yourselves!”

There was no response. Trixie waited, but the cave had not decided to answer back. Maybe she was hearing things, she thought. “Your efforts to frighten Trixie are useless!” she called out. Trixie resumed digging, but a cloud of paranoia loomed over her. There was a fleeting moment where she believed to have heard the voice again. This time it said, Leave while you can.

“Who is there?” she called out again. “Whoever you are, you will never get your hooves on Trixie’s treasure!”

Once again the cave didn’t answer. Trixie wanted to continue digging. She knew she was near, but fear was stopping her. The passage on the wall came to her thoughts. Must she heed the warning? The question made her shiver. At that same instant, she shook off the fear. Trixie rationalized that it was just her mind playing tricks on her since the cave was terribly dark. The unearthing commenced.

Beneath the dirt was a loud clank. Trixie stopped, tossed the shovel aside, then let her hooves uncover whatever it was she found. She reached down into the dirt.

There it was. She found it after her long journey. A black box that fitted nicely into both of her hooves like a piece of an unsolvable puzzle. The box was made of a material that was foreign to her senses, chained and locked tightly. There were many ways to open a box, Trixie thought.

Put it back, the voice of the cave said.

“Trixie refuses to listen to you,” she told the dark void. “Trixie will leave, and there is nothing you can do otherwise.”

Trixie turned to the direction she came from, hoping to find her way out of the cave. From the time to time the small voice warned her, pleading her to leave the box at the cave where it belonged. It wouldn’t get through to her. The Great and Powerful Trixie will never heed such warnings. She already came this way to find the treasure.

Princess Luna found her elder sister at and about in the castle garden. Celestia had her eyes fixed upon a statue of a peculiar draconequus. Luna tilted her head. Why was Celestia setting her gaze at Discord, she wondered. For what purpose?

“I’m glad you’ve arrived,” Celestia said. “I want to talk to you.”

“About what?” asked Luna.

Celestia didn’t answer. Luna stood next to her sister, and together they stared at the statue of Discord, the spirit of chaos. Looking closely, they saw fear in his face. It was the exact moment he was turned to stone for a second time, thanks to the Elements of Harmony lead by Twilight Sparkle. To this day neither Celestia nor Luna had no idea how Discord managed to escape his eternal punishment, but they were pleased that Equestria was safe from his grasp.

“I have invited Twilight Sparkle and her friends to Canterlot for the Summer Sun Celebration. I believe it will be a great way to honor them for the good they have done.”

“That is very kind of you, sister. I am sure Twilight will appreciate it,” said Luna. “I will have the guest rooms prepared for their arrival.”

Celestia nodded. “My reason for doing this is because this is the season she lost Rainbow Dash. I thought spending some time in Canterlot with her friends will make her feel better. It’s the least I can do.”

“I can’t believe a year has passed already,” added Luna. She kept her gaze on Discord’s statue. Then, she turned to her sister. From the look on her face she was deep in thought. “You seem to be troubled. Is something the matter, my sister?”

“I was thinking about the last threat the Elements faced. King Sombra and his rule over the Crystal Empire. I have a feeling that something is going to happen again… very soon.”

“All the reason why we must be vigilant. Do you remember that protective shield we placed over Canterlot during Princess Cadence’s wedding?” asked Luna.

“I do. And Queen Chrysalis still managed found a way around it. By kidnapping Cadence herself. How low can a pony go?”

“Not as low as Chrysalis. We must put up a shield during the Summer Sun Celebration, if you’re anxious that an enemy attack may happen.”

“No, we shouldn’t do that. Let’s wait until after, at least until the Watchguards send out an alert. The Celebration of the Summer Sun is supposed to be a joyous occasion. We shouldn’t harbor feelings of paranoia.”

“... That didn’t stop me,” Luna said drearily.

Celestia stole a glance at Luna. She knew what her young sister meant. They remained silent. Celestia guessed the discussion of the situation was settled. Will they give a protective shield over Canterlot another chance after last time? Surely they have learned to make it stronger, much more fool-proof. She wish the days were simple like before.

“What dwells your thoughts now, sister?” Luna asked.

“How do you think it feels being turned into stone?”

“... I don’t understand you.”

“It’s a simple question. How do you think it feels to be turned into stone? How does it feel to not have any control of your body or movements?”

“I believe it’s similar to a prison. Why do you ask such things?”

“A long time ago, I performed an experiment on myself,” she said.

Luna gave her a look of confusion. “You did? What did you do?”

“I wanted to know what it felt like to be turned into stone. I ordered my guards to go into the Everfree forest to capture a cockatrice, and to bring it to the castle. Then the moment finally came for the experiment to begin. When I looked into its eyes… there was fear I never felt before. I couldn’t move. My entire body was petrified. The fear continued to consume me, for some reason it felt like I was dying. It was painful. Even breathing became difficult. Seeing how I was in great agony, the guards quickly turned the cockatrice away from my sight. I healed myself, but from that day forward I finally knew the pain of being turned into stone.”

“Sister, why would you do that to yourself?” Luna asked in shock. “That was foolish of you.”

“I had to. I wanted to know what went through Discord’s mind as we, and Twilight Sparkle and her friends, turned him into stone. Now I know. Saying it was terrible feeling is a tremendous understatement. There are no words to describe the pain and fear I felt. I hope we were not cruel to him.”

“We did what we had to do,” said Luna. “He is the spirit and the embodiment of anarchy and disorder. There was no way he can live among us civilized ponies. Harmony is something we value the most.”

“Maybe you’re right. But surely you can see the look on his face.”

Luna gazed upon the statue of Discord once more, and yes, there was great fear on his face, and was immortalized in stone for all generations. The thought never occurred to her that being encapsulated in stone was a fate worse than death. She thought there was no pain, and a suitable punishment for Discord. It was difficult to admit that her views had slightly changed.

“It’s just something I think we should both know,” said Celestia.

“Are you thinking of releasing Discord? Because if you are, you have completely lost your mind, Celestia.”

“I didn’t say I was going to set him free.”

“... Well, whatever you are thinking, don’t do it, for your sake and for mine. I have to return to the castle and inform the staff of our coming guests.”

“I’ll be right there,” said Celestia.

Luna nodded and flew back to the castle. Celestia stayed behind with Discord. She wondered what he and Twilight said to each other before his final defeat. Did Discord mocked the power of the Elements? Did Twilight lectured about the power of friendship? And that look of fear. It goes to show that even the most terrifying of creatures can feel fear and helplessness.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle held tightly to the metal bars of the spinning roundabout. They feared the two would fly off and hurt themselves if they lose only a slightest grip. It always happened when Scootaloo was spinning it.

“Not so fast!” yelled Sweetie.

“You want me to go faster? Okay!” joked Scootaloo. She increased the speed of the roundabout, laughing inwardly as she sent Apple Bloom and Sweetie into a frenzy. They begged Scootaloo to stop, then listened after waiting a few moments. The fillies stumbled from dizziness, and felt the world furiously spin around them, then falling onto the grass to catch their breaths. They can hear Scootaloo chuckling.

“Dang Scootaloo, you almost killed us,” said Apple Bloom.

“Come on, don’t be so overdramatic. It wasn’t that bad.”

“I think I’m going to be sick,” Sweetie groaned.

“That’s just your body playing tricks on you. You’ll be fine.”

Feeling horribly weak and tired from the dizziness they suffered, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle stayed on the ground, choosing instead to climb on each other for support. Scootaloo shrugged, then trotted to the bench where Tank was. There was only his shell, but when Scootaloo held him in her hooves his head and limbs appeared. “I know you don’t want to be spun around like that,” she said. A thought made Scootaloo curious. She wondered what sort of fun things Rainbow Dash did with him. Scootaloo reminded herself to talk to Fluttershy later. Maybe she’ll have the answers, she thought.

Scootaloo had an idea. She sat up from the bench and moved to the ground where she turned herself on her back, and lifted Tank with all four of her legs. She liked doing that with him back home. Scootaloo figured it was fun to do it outdoors. That way, against the backdrop of the blue sky, it looked as though he was flying. Next, she pictured small wings stretching from his shell.

Her ears picked up the groaning from Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, and she shook her head in amusement. Scootaloo turned her head and saw Apple Bloom attempting to stand up, while at the same time trying to force Sweetie Belle off her back.

“Are you guys serious? It wasn’t that bad,” said Scootaloo. “We’ve been through much worse.”

“Thanks to you I can’t even see straight anymore,” said Apple Bloom. “In fact, I’m seeing three of you. My vision sight must be bad.”

Scootaloo shook her head again, then resumed playing with Tank. Then she heard the voices other ponies entering the playground. With another turn of her head Scootaloo saw them, a mother pegasus and her two children. Suddenly, she did a double-take. She recognized them. There was a colt and a foal, probably months old by now. They were the family that moved into Rainbow Dash’s home. The father wasn’t with them. Maybe he was at work today, Scootaloo thought. She sat up and gently placed Tank on the ground to get a better look at them. Before she had always seen them from a distance. The mother and the colt recognized her as well as they approached the swings.

“Hey, I remember you,” the mother said pleasantly. “You’re the filly on the scooter we keep seeing.”

“Uh… yeah, that’s me,” Scootaloo said nervously. “My name is Scootaloo. I’m sorry if I was disturbing you during those time.”

“There’s nothing to be sorry about,” she said, smiling. “We hoped we get a chance to meet you sooner or later. My name is Iris, and this my son Breeze and my new daughter Aurora.”

“Hi,” Breeze said. Iris waved Aurora’s little arms for her. It made Scootaloo giggle.

“Hello,” she said.

There was something Scootaloo always do out of habit when she meets other young pegasi her age. She inconspicuously glance at their wings, to see if they are growing or have already grown. She didn’t know why. Looking at Breeze’s wings, she couldn’t tell. He still looked pretty young to have fully-grown wings. She smile and nodded.

“Hey, it’s that a turtle?” he asked.

“Oh… um, yeah. He’s my pet. His name is Tank.”

“That’s an appropriate name,” said Iris.

“We have some birds at home,” added Breeze. “Well, they belong to my dad. He likes birds. He’s a… a…”

“An ornithologist,” said Iris. “He studies birds. That’s why we moved here to Ponyville, because there are more birds here than they are in Fillydelphia.”

“That’s cool,” said Scootaloo. “You all are from Fillydelphia?”

“Yes. It’s a wonderful city, but it can suck the energy out of you. Another reason we moved to Ponyville is because is so… quiet and peaceful. I think it’s a great place to raise a family.”

“Yeah, it is a nice town,” added Scootaloo.

Aurora caught the attention of her mother by making her little baby sounds. She wanted to ride on the foal-sized swings. Iris excused herself, leaving Scootaloo and Breeze. He looked past Scootaloo and saw two fillies standing up, realizing they have been lying on the ground for quite sometime.

“What’s with them? Are they alright?” he asked.

“Oh, those are my friends, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. They’re just dizzy from me spinning them really fast on that thing,” she said, pointing at the roundabout. Breeze laughed. “They’ll be okay.”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie saw that Scootaloo was talking another pony, a colt. Curious about this, they decided to approach them.

“And who might you be?” asked Apple Bloom.

“My name is Breeze. My family just moved here. I was just talking to Scootaloo.”

“You just moved here? Where do you live?” asked Sweetie.

“Outside of town, in a cloud house.”

“A cloud house… that sounds like Rainbow Dash’s house,” said Sweetie.

“Who’s Rainbow Dash?” asked Breeze.

“Oh… Rainbow Dash was a friend of mine. A really good friend, actually. She’s not around anymore,” Scootaloo said sadly.

“What happened to her?”

“She… passed away last year.”

“Oh. I’m sorry about that. We didn’t know the house belonged to anybody important. It was up for sale and my parents bought it. I hope you’re not upset.”

“That’s okay. I figured it was going to happen anyway. Ever since she died, once in awhile I always ride my scooter outside of town to look at her house. It was like a memorial for me. That’s why you’ve always see me come by every so often.”

“What was Rainbow Dash like?” asked Breeze.

Scootaloo face lit up when Breeze asked her that question. No matter how she felt about her death, she had no problem explain to those who didn’t know how amazing a pony Rainbow Dash was. She told Breeze about the fun times they had together, her aspirations to be the greatest flyer in Equestria, and how she stood up to bullies bigger than her. To Scootaloo she was more than just a pegasus. Rainbow Dash was larger than life. Finally, she recounted how Rainbow Dash died during a flight performance she planned for a long time. Breeze had no idea that she was the only pony in recent years to create a sonic rainboom multiple times. Even Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle backed her on that statement, so Breeze couldn’t say that she was making things up.

“Did she knew she was going to die?” Breeze asked.

“I don’t know,” Scootaloo said, after taking a moment to think. There was no way Rainbow Dash could have known she was going to go out in the blaze of glory. There were times when she called her aerial stunt show “the greatest thing I’ll ever do.” She also remembered Rainbow Dash saying she’ll never do anything as amazing like that again. Still, Scootaloo never believed Rainbow had known of her imminent death. But what if it was? Rainbow Dash couldn’t have trained for her amazing performance for nothing. How come none of this crossed her mind before? she wondered.

“Well, either way, Rainbow Dash sounds really awesome!” Breeze said. Scootaloo smiled, agreeing with him. “I wish I could’ve met her before… you know.”

“She was really great,” said Scootaloo.

Iris returned with Aurora, whose appearance caught the attention of Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Breeze introduced them to his mother, who was also pleased to see them. Despite that, the two fillies couldn’t take their eyes off of Breeze’s little sister. Sweetie was especially bewitched, as she commented how cute she was.

Later, as the afternoon passed, Breeze and his family left the playground. Iris informed Scootaloo that she was more than welcomed to their home, and to come by and visit anytime she pleased. Scootaloo and Breeze were happy to hear this from her. The pegasi waved goodbye to the fillies.

“They seem nice,” said Sweetie Belle, looking at Scootaloo.

“Yeah, they sure do,” Scootaloo said, although from the tone of her voice she wasn’t quite sure of something.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing. They’re really nice. I was thinking of something else.”

“Thinking of what?” asked Apple Bloom.

“Like… do you think it’s possible that…” Scootaloo didn’t know how to answer that question. How can Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle know of such things? They were just fillies. But then, so was she. “Forget it. It’s nothing important.” Scootaloo set Tank back on the bench whilst watching him hide inside his large shell. Then she sat herself on the middle swing. “Come on, let’s see how high each of us can go,” she called out.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle gave uneasy glances at each other. Nothing can be done, so they gave in and joined Scootaloo on the swings. It served as a good distraction from whatever she was thinking about.

The Great and Powerful Trixie caught herself in a predicament. She finally sought out what she travelled the farthest reaches of Equestria for - the lost treasure of the Cave of Enoch, but she hadn’t found her way out. She tried to retrace her steps from the beginning and to remember which direction she came from. There was no opening in sight.

Trixie cursed in the darkness. Only the sound of her voice responded back. How could such dreadful of circumstances happen to her? she wondered. She was the Great and Powerful Trixie for goodness sake, the unicorn who can find her way out of anything. But being lost in a dark cave seem to be the greatest trick she ever found herself in. Trixie wondered if Hoofdini ever had moments of error. Probably not, she realized.

She kept her horn glowing. Surely there must be a way out. There was no way Trixie had gone that far. In fact it felt like a short walk when she entered the cave, which was absolutely strange. Or was it? Could being in this cave have an effect on time itself?

Also, there was a matter of the voices Trixie heard through her long, agonizing walk. Whoever they were - ghosts, spirits, phantasms, they wouldn’t leave her be. Or maybe they were all in her head? Trixie tried to convince herself the voices she heard were her imagination. She continued to hear them every few moments or so. You shouldn’t have come here, they would say to her. Leave the box. You’ve made a grave mistake. All of them were faint whispered in the darkness.

“You ponies are annoying Trixie!” Trixie shouted. “If you think you can take this treasure off of Trixie’s hooves, you are sadly mistaken!”

No matter how much she yelled, the voices continued on. Trixie wish they could help her find the way out of the cave, but unfortunately that wouldn’t be the case.

Let go of the box. It’s dangerous. Leave it now and you’ll find your way. You shouldn’t have come here. Your life is in danger.

The voices grew on top of each other, and finally Trixie couldn’t take it anymore. She let out a loud groan and slumped on the ground. Her horn remain illuminated, but she remained in the darkness. Trixie realized who was to blame for all her suffering.

“Darn you, you miserable goat!” she yelled. “You knew Trixie wanted that treasure, so you put a hex on the map! Maybe this isn’t the real treasure! You will rue the day you set out to cross the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Her loud voice echoed throughout the cave. She was her only audience, save for the voices Trixie continued to hear. They probably didn’t listen to her. This gave enough time for Trixie to think. She considered listening to the voices, and leaving the box behind if it will help her find a way out. Trixie will probably bury it as well if that’s what they want. Maybe then the voices will stop. However, she did managed to travel long distances with little food to get here. And not one living soul knows about it, and they did Trixie was the first to find it. No, she decided. Trixie will not let this one go. If that means being trapped in the cave for all eternity, then so be it. Then, when the next pony enters the cave to find the treasure, they will stop and gazed upon Trixie’s bones, and realized they weren’t the first ones to find it.

With her decision having been made, it looked like there was no way out of the cave. However, she remained optimistic about her situation. The treasure now belonged to her. But first she had to open it, which was the difficult part of her journey. When she found it, the box was tightly bound in chains with a lock at the center. Whoever buried it didn’t think to at least bury a key with the box. Then she had a brilliant idea. Trixie placed the box down and aimed her horn at it. She released a beam of magic to pick at the lock. After a few tries she learned that not even magic can get it open. However, her spirit did not give in.

Don’t do it! the voices told her. Their tones were sharper than before. We warned you! Only darkness dwells! Dread! Cursed! Oblivion!

“Quiet!” grumbled Trixie. The voices were especially feisty right now. How could that be? Earlier they were mildly annoying. She kept picking the lock with her magic. Trixie focused her energy and strength into the box. One way or another she will get it open, and she will be the richest mare in Equestria, even prosperous than the Royal Sisters themselves. Trixie groaned and grumbled, cursed under breath, and wiped sweat from her brow. She was almost there. The lock was almost undone.

When the box of unlocked, the cave was filled with glowing light. Trixie was finally able to see her surroundings, but something was not right. The shining light slowly turned red. Ominous sounds and shadowy figures made themselves known. Trixie couldn’t look away. She felt herself being pulled into its presence. Something was… trying to make contact with her. An invisible force pushed her down, and she screamed in agony. Then the red light was gone, and all was black, but Trixie felt someone was with her.

“We are free,” it said. There were many, horrible voices speaking as one.

“Who… who are you?” Trixie asked in fear. She was speaking, but didn’t feel her lips move, which terrorized her to no end.

“My name is Legion, for we are many,” the entity said.

“Legion? What? I don’t understand,” stammered Trixie.

“You have set us free from our prison. And now we shall have our revenge.”

“Please don’t hurt me, I beg of you!”

Trixie screamed inside her mind as the evil spirits invaded her body. She felt the sensation of being on fire as she lost control of herself. Her mind violently flashed images of a great war in the world beyond, demons being bound in chains and imprisoned in the same box she found. Then she saw images of things that were to come. The sun and the moon turning into blood as the whole world was set ablaze. The charred bodies of ponies, and the final war against their heavenly opponents.

Then there was silence. Legion forced Trixie to pull herself up. There was still some resistance in her, something Legion had no problem with.

“Resistance is futile,” they said. “You will help get our revenge against those who imprisoned us. You will help us build an army to take control of this world… and the one beyond.”

Legion, now in full possession of Trixie, forced her to take steps forward, one leg by one leg. Legion aimed their newly acquired horn at the darkness, shot a beam of dark magic, and a portal opened. It led them outside the cave.

To Be Continued